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Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas is in advanced discussions with senior J Sagar Associates (JSA) Mumbai partner Akshay Chudasama to head its Mumbai office but nothing concrete has been signed or agreed between the parties according to several authoritative sources.

It is understood that no internal announcement has been made within JSA and that discussions between Shardul Amarchand and Chudasama are ongoing.

Chudasama declined to comment when contacted.

Bar & Bench has first reported several minutes ago that that “SAM & Co bags JSA biggie: Akshay Chudasama + Team” and that Chudasama was “all set to join Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas in Mumbai, according to authoritative sources”.

Legally India authoritatively understands that this is incorrect as talks are still ongoing and not finalised, though they may end up being successful.

We have reached out to JSA for comment.

Chudasama has been a partner at JSA since 2005, having joined from AZB & Partners where he was a partner from 2002.

He was the managing partner of Lex Inde in Mumbai from 1994 until 2002 and holds an undergraduate in economics from the University of Bombay and a 1994 LLB from the London School of Economics.

By reading the comments you agree that they are the (often anonymous) personal views and opinions of readers, which may be biased and unreliable, and for which Legally India therefore has no liability. If you believe a comment is inappropriate, please click 'Report to LI' below the comment and we will review it as soon as practicable.

With a number of other "senior" partners waiting in the wings for an opportune moment to jump ship, this could be the beginning of the end for JSA. For all the talk of meritocracy, sharing equity etc, when people see the colour of (more) money, they will jump ship. Post Jyoti and Berjis, quite tough to see anyone commanding the respect of the whole firm and those who are unlikely to be around the high table will jump ship in pursuit of the moolah. Hate to say it, but JSA is going to see some very difficult times.

Kian few weeks ago you had posted some statistics to prove your assertion that far more ppl visited and read LI than BB. If that is true how can you say there is *no additional damage* done if you report this news! Also why must you blindly copy BB and what it does - if it doesn't add value for your site !?!

If you agree conceptually, you should have made a principle stand and not write about this. Maybe BnB will learn! When you say the damage was done by BnB writing about it, the same people will not be interested in reading the same information on LI. By writing here, you are disseminating it to more people. So you cant wash your hands completely of any moral obligation of effing up.

I disagree and think we can wash our hands of moral obligation completely here.

1. Once anyone reported this, it became a reality within JSA that Chudasama and the partnership had to deal with in one way or another. The brunt of the damage was done the second they hit publish, tweet it or Google alerts pick it up.

The only options available to Chudasama internally would have been to deny completely, clarify or confirm that story to the other partners. The first is not really an option in a partnership such as JSA.

2. We would have added to the damage by misreporting it; by clarifying that currently it is only talks in advanced stages, arguably the damage is being reduced and internal discussions at JSA at least have a bedrock of facts, rather than Chudasama having to deny the B&B report which stated he had already signed up to SAM (without telling his partners).

Us not reporting on it would be like us sticking our head in the sand that wouldn't have made the situation any better, and arguably worse for everyone involved.

This isn't the first time we have such a situation - I'd say that we were aware of at least 80% of the B&B Amarchand 'exclusives' of the last 6 months before they were published but we slow played the stories due to sensitivities involved or at the request of the subjects.

In nearly every controversial and 'unnamed sources' partner move story we try to give the person time to respond and at least make them aware of what and when we are publishing and give them the opportunity to object. Usually we speak to the partner involved on the phone.

I don't think our competition does that necessarily, which can speed things up but lead to situations such as this one.

X has not told ABC about these talks, since they're not finalised yet and it'd be a pretty massive deal to the entire partnership.

Publication F publishes, saying his move is a done deal. ABC jumps on X's head, as do clients, saying, 'how dare you sign up with SAM without even telling us, your co-partners and clients???'

Scenario 1) If LI didn't publish anything, X would have to tell angry clients and partners: 'Honestly, please believe me, F made a mistake it, I am still just talking to SAM. Shouldn't I be allowed to talk and examine options? You'd have been the first to know if I was about to sign something. And look, LI didn't report it, so it can't be true, no?'

Doesn't sound very convincing.

Scenario 2.) If LI published, at least X can say: 'Look, I'm sorry I didn't tell you but we were just talking very seriously - look at LI has the correct report. I really hope the discussions work out with SAM and you'll be the first to know.'

First option sounds much worse for everyone involved (other than SAM, possibly).

Hehe, thanks - after years of experience of dealing with partners, law firms and clients, some of whom can be very prickly or emotional, you learn a thing or two how things work and how people think ;)

Also, you can't survive in this market for 6 years if you don't do this kind of basic journalism by the book...

Kian - If B&B had so many supporters, B&B articles would have had more comments. As a neutral observer who has seen LI and B&B grow over last few years, I get a feeling that of late B&B has been doing better and that is getting into your skin, resulting in some reckless LI articles. Please introspect whether you have been trying too hard to beat them :)

JSA was becoming more and more commie with partners who didn't pull their weight (senior and junior) taking away large portions of the pie. If you don't reward merit and you keep the difference in profit shares minimal irrespective of who brings in the bacon, what do you expect?

My two bit. Akshay was among the top 5-6 partners of JSA. Big rain maker and his team likes him. JSA has its restrictions in pay structure, which generally doesn't pay lot more to a top performer. Not much difference in people's pay at same designation in JSA. Most of the senior equity partner in JSA make same amount of money in JSA and not ideal for a rainmaker like Akshay. Akshay is a good lawyer and great law firm partner who built a team but not a legal luminary like Som. He would have been one of the senior partner in JSA and in SAM he is Mumbai managing partner. Great deal for him and big hole for JSA in M&A practice. Lets see how JSA responds, a lot to think for them if they want to remain in top 4-5.

SAM couldn't have got a better deal thn this in mumbai. SAM is really at the top of the game whereas CAM is busy gathering numbers n sending emails claiming himself to be number 1. Actions speak louder thn words!

Giving credit or reference to bar & bench is becoming a normal affair in li. Either you need to stop it or start publishing accurate info before they do or independently without this reference business. It can only spell doom to Li or give additional publicity to bar n bench. Every reader who reads this article will go n visit bar n bench. If you keep on doing this (unintentional) publicity to bar n bench, you are driving more readers to bnb. N this is not good for li as bnb is better from web design n layout perspective. N they maintain same stds in all the articles. N you n I both know, both websites are running because of the law firm stories, especially lateral hires n some gossip. N only the early bird will make the killing in these stories. N bnb's paywall doesn't make any difference as most of them would have read it for free on bnb by the time such law firm stories reach pay wall. You being free will not have any edge in such stories as it would have lost its life. So you can't think and ride free wheel as it has lost its thread by then. Even if you don't publish this comment, I am okay with it.. But stop this reference business.. If you are so inclined to continue this at least make it a generic name like online legal journ website or media reference.

Thanks for your feedback, which seems well intentioned. I agree we could just give credit to anonymous legal titles or not at all, as they usually don't, but I think it would be dishonest and our readers are too intelligent for us to pretend we are the only website out there and live in a bubble. And other publications I respect have similar policies: Mint, NYT, the Guardian, etc.

Please allow me to blow LI's trumpet briefly and explain what we are about.

Our first priority is providing an honest, accurate and useful publication for our readers that provides a holistic picture of the legal market. If in the process we drive some traffic to our competitors, so be it, I don't really mind.

And I think that our traffic growth and overall reader feedback has been supporting our approach (we hit 198,000 unique visitors per month last week or so - thank you all! :)

To those who like and understand what we do, I don't mind if you read other publications and we're forced to prove to you every day from scratch that our coverage is Better and we're worth coming back to - it is the Internet after all and everything is just a click away.

And if on stories like this, where in my opinion B&B jumped the gun, got it wrong and reported what should have waited, I and I'm sure most readers don't mind if we exercise restraint and *not* publish immediately, lose one 'scoop' and publish 10 minutes after they do.

Anyway, completely off topic but thought I would use this opportunity to explain sanctimoniously what I want LI to be and why we do things the way we do.

Thanks - we'll consider publishing fewer of the trolls, though I feel that some of them have genuine pain and sadness in their lives and it makes them happy to be reasoned with, even when they're unreasonable...

Um, I think that's a bad thing, particularly since the first few episodes were ok and then the series spiralled downhill pretty quickly... Plus, Will (i.e. Sorkin) an annoying know-it-all asswipe most of the time. But at least he (i.e. Sorkin) has some right ideas about journalism :)

Akshay is a ego hire. At three times the cost of what he was getting or deserved . It may be a coup for Sam but its totally unsustainable. . Giving Akshay regional mp Position also shuts out any other star. And a lot of people who don't like him won't join Sam despite more money. . So Sam has hitched his wagon solely to the Akshay engine in Mumbai. . Akshay is good but not amongst the top ten lawyers in Mumbai . So not sure this is actually a smart move. Semi stars who act like prima donnas actually cause more damage than good . And the real bite would come when Sam has to increase delhi salaries in line with the crazy numbers he offering in Mumbai just to keep up with his brother. Remember Dewey ? Sam is behaving like the future number 4 firm that is pretending to be number 1 . The times article predicts that Sam will be number 2 . Nobody in the market believes that azb or others Will let go the number 2 and 3 slit to Sam . So sadly for Sam they will be number 4 or below is the prognosis.

Not sure about whether this hire will materialise and whether it will make sense. However, it clearly stands head and shoulders above CAMs tier three hires. The fact that the SAM family is willing to project a non- family member as an MP also speaks volumes of their intent - unlike CAM MP who believes that one strong leader can do it all.

one could expect to see some more action in JSA Mumbai and to some extent in Bangalore as well. Delhi will remain unaffected by and large. Sad to see JSA crumbling which is inevitable after the Jyoti-Berjis era. The reckless promotions to equity and salaried partnership without regard to the quality of the lawyers or their ability to build practices will inevitably dilute the equity of those who have been accustomed to fat pay cheques for quite some time now. With apologies for the blunt speak, the [...] clique in Mumbai will drive others to look for opportunities elsewhere. Tensions between Mumbai and Delhi and within each of these offices and an overall lack of quality in potential Managing Partners for the future do not bode well for JSA. A number of partners may have shouted from the rooftops about the need for Indian law firms to outgrow the family-driven model but promise them some more money and they will happily sing a new tune. Lots of hard thinking for JSA to do and yes, they need some hands-on and quality management and leadership now.

Look, LI is vastly more entertaining than BB is (at least for the moment) and you seemt o attract a far larger audience than BB does - but ranting about how you didnt publish a story that you knew about before BB because of some odd moral reason just makes you seem like a sore loser. Let it be - you win some, you lose some.

Also, as an aside, now that you are moderating a large number of comments, when casual visitors like me come on to your site, it almost seems like you only publish positive comments. In fairness, I think that the more aggressive moderation has improved LI, but you might be better served not leaving a reference to the fact that a comment has been moderated / not published on the site.

Manisha Shroff leaving was confirmed by Cyril Amarchand and we had let her know we're running a story. Her joining Khaitan was confirmed by two authoritative sources.

The Phoenix story was confirmed by an authoritative Phoenix source and another, they had already joined several weeks ago and we reached out to KSP for comment several days before publishing.

Happy to explain our sourcing requirements more thoroughly, but when we say 'authoritative sources' it means at least two independent sources who know what they are talking about have confirmed it but can not go on the record for a variety of reasons...

Some of the laterals from ILS,symbi and GLC are perhaps much better than NLU laterals!Any case, a few years experience, there's absolutely no difference! The greatest lawyers in the world have all not been bred at an NLU!And puhlese - have seen really useless NLU graduates also and some super smart non-NLU graduates!

Can you really say that there as at firms that are completely NLU staffed and those firms are in any way better than other firms. The large firms that do hire excessively from these schools have attrition and squabbling. And it's really impossible to say they are qualitatively better. They just tend to think better of themselves, much like your comment makes apparent.

Yes sir. That's what exactly I am saying. People from these non NLU schools don't even know the difference between a contract and an agreement. Dont even know that Bhatia has been overruled. Don't know what's the difference between FDI and FII. These people might have experience but definitely lack the innovative thinking the field requires

Thanks to all the worldly knowledge on difference between contract & agreeement, FDI & FPI (dude, FEMA calls it portfolio investment!),the NLU fellows are soo theoretical and spoon fed,they will invariably give solutions which will commercially never ever fly! End of the day, it's NOT the school you went to - it's how well you learn on the job!That's what makes a lawyer!

Yes sir. That's what exactly I am saying. People from these non NLU schools don't even know the difference between a contract and an agreement. Dont even know that Bhatia has been overruled. Don't know what's the difference between FDI and FII. These people might have experience but definitely lack the innovative thinking the field requires

hahaha buddy i have seen a top ranked nlu grad who in an interview when asked about "mens rea" has answered that read the term somewhere probably in CPC but unable to recollect the meaning of the term..!!! this is just one example ..having interviewed many do you really want me to disclose the ridiculous answers given by NLU grads..!! better grow up and concentrate on studies rather than sitting and boasting about NLU's otherwise probably u will end up with a bowl in hand for job in the market.. nobody cares after 2-3 years which colg u belong to..!!

Excellent observations - all of them. I am sure you will be picked up by CAM or SAM since you are good at scam.

How do you justify publishing the story on Chudasama with your three cardinal rule(reproduced for convenience):

1. Things are final 2. Things are internally announced (ideally)3. We've spoken to the partner leaving.

Which of these did you complete before publishing this story. I am curious to know - considering that your headline for the story is: "Shardul Amarchand in talks with JSA senior Mumbai partner Akshay Chudasama, nothing signed yet"

Come up with some solid reasoning for your continued edits of my comments.

Tl;dr: once something is published already by someone else, the damage is done and we don't have a moral obligation not to publish such talks anymore, as long as we are sufficiently confident in the facts.

And before the angry troll comes back, we're happy with the Bandhakavi story that we reported before the partnership vote had concluded because we had very strong sourcing. Speak to the people involved and ask if they were upset or thought our coverage was unfair, and then come back and complain. Thanks!

He's half parsi which helps. He has friends in high places. He us sophisticated and soft mannered and so a good fit for managing partner. The yetm regional has a diminishing quality to it. Mum managing partner. Without media hype like some other jsa partners he has so much respect and goodwill.

Didn't B&B report a rumour as fact that Shardul would be 100 lawyers in Mumbai immediately by merging with a big firm? Didn't they write that Sudipto would be joining Shardul when he actually joined Vaishali? Now they're reporting Akshay discussions with SAM as done deal.

If I wanted unfounded gossip and rumours, I would go to B&B. For facts, debunking or confirming of B&B gossip, I go to LI. :-)

if the deals not done yet and bnb has published it, then the leak must have been from SAM's end and that too deliberate. But why ? Make it difficult for Akshay to back out or to put a spanner in his hard nosed negotiations ? Bnb was always a [...], but this shows that Sam is not a trustworthy colleague/boss.

The SAM & CAM saga - India's best S-C-AM amongst the legal fraternity!! Monday to Saturday at 9 pm one bloke drives the Nation crazy when the Nation seriously does not want to know.. On the other hand KiaN wants the World to Know what the Firms do not want to know.. About their Star Partner moves from an online legal tabloid.. Wanted to write keep up the [...] work but since I am mighty sure in such an eventuality this comment would have been "moderated", am constrained to say Good Job Kian!!!! We love Legally India!!!! Blowing your trumpet on your behalf..

Maintaining Confidentiality is a lawyers virtue...why is the SAM team failing to contain news of being in discussion with laterals they are aiming to poach. People like Akshay won't get hurt with such leaks. But associates/ junior partners planning a move to SAM now need to worry about the info reaching their office before them (after the interview).

Whether Chuda-decides to SAM it or not, JSA still has star partners. Berjis, Som, Amit, Dina, Farhad, Sumanto etc. If Jatin were to leave SAM, it doesnt mean a SAM collapse. Same logic applies. AMSS dissolved and neither side has lost clients. And that was a nearly 100 year old firm. Also why arent you reporting Nikhil Narayanan quit SAM?!!

What! You wrote [...] with a straight keyboard? Amit and Som are the only quality the firm has left, in terms of market presence. Next you'll be saying [...] or [...] can manage M&A for the firm. JSA [...] will not outlast its founder. Immensely sad, but true. But the man himself is to blame, rewarding the ability to stick around more than merit/ talent. In Akshay's shoes I think it's the best move he could have made. The man knows when to jump.